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Preface
Freedomalwayscomeswithaprice.Thisappliestofreedomof
speechandfreedomofreligion.Thecrucialpointiswhohas
topaytheprice.
Freedomcannotdefenditself.
Itneeds
witnesses,martyrsand,aboveall,guardiansandprotectors.In
theUnitedStates,freedomofspeechandfreedomofreligionare
consideredbasicfreedomsbecausetheywereenshrinedinthe
FirstAmendmenttotheConstitution.Thistextbookisabout
respectforandappreciationofthesetwofreedoms,andconsists
ofcasesthathaveappearedbeforeAmericancourts.TheUnited
StatesSupremeCourtistheultimatedefenderoflibertyandthe
pre-eminentguardianofthesetwofreedoms,whichiswhythe
overwhelmingmajorityofcitedsentencesarefromthatCourt.
TwentyyearsagoIwasawardedanLL.M.byGeorgetown
UniversityLawCenterwhereIwasabletostudythanksto
ascholarshipgrantedbyMr.ZygmuntNagórski.Followingthe
graduationceremonyatthemaincampuson25May1992,Iasked
howIcouldshowhimmygratitudeandhesuggestedthatIshould
–perhapssometimeinthefuturehelpothersobtainaneducation.
WhenIreturnedtoPoland,IwasofferedapostintheFaculty
ofLawandAdministrationoftheUniversityofWarsaw,and
IpreparedtwocoursesinAmericanlawinadditiontomyregular
Romanlawcourses.InWarsaw,andlaterattheJagiellonian
UniversityinKraków,Ifocusedonthefreedomofreligionand
freedomofspeechinUnitedStatesSupremeCourtjurisprudence.
Thistextbookistheresultofmytenyears’experienceofteaching
abouttheFirstAmendmenttotheUnitedStatesConstitution.
Thetextbookprovidesmaterialsfordiscussionandconsistsonly
ofselectedopinionsofAmericancourtswhichhavebeenabridged
toenucleatethemainproblemandnotburdenthereaderwith
allthedetails,andalsotoavoiddiscussinglegalissuesthatare
notdirectlyrelatedtothepresentsubjectmatter.Thismannerof
presentinglawbychoosingandcollectingtogetherlegalopinions
hasalongtradition.ItwasusedbyJustinian’scompilers,who
collectedtheworkofRomanjuristsinhisfamousDigestofAD533.
IdecidedtochoosethisformbecauseIbelieveitisthebestwayof
introducingjurisprudentialdiscussion.Theselectedextractswill
enablereaderstojoininthediscussionbyallowingthemtoform
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